Frank X. Arvan: Don't let bankruptcy stop dreams for a better Detroit

Aug. 19, 2013

The Broderick Tower, left, reopened as residential housing last year after sitting vacant for decades. The David Whitney Building, at right, is under renovation now. / 2012 photo by JESSICA J. TREVINO/Detroit Free Pres

People gather around a rotating lineup of local restaurants last month in Cadillac Square in Detroit. The food shacks are a new addition to downtown this year. / Andre J. Jackson/Detroit Free Press

Frank X. Arvan

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There is an intimate connection between people, power, poverty and place, and there is no better city in the world to see this than Detroit. With the cityís bankruptcy, we cannot lose sight of the human issues that face our city.

For decades, money and power have moved away from Detroitís center. But even in the face of city governmentís failure to manage its assets properly, this is changing, with a slow movement back to the center.

This movement is a good thing for many reasons. Primarily, it will help bolster the tax base. But just as important, it will create a stronger spatial connection between power and poverty that we havenít had in this region for a century. Power and poverty will feel each otherís existence. They will see the humanity of each side and be nudged to recognize the shared responsibility of caring for this shared place. Barriers will be reduced and human interaction encouraged, with greater acceptance of diversity on all levels. This is how successful, vital, dense urban cities operate, and this is how creativity is bred. Exposure to diverse people, places and ideas excite and promote the imagination and a sense of the common good that includes everyone.

The rich and powerful are not likely to hang out on the street corner. But, like New York City and other dense urban places, there will at least be a shared common place that people, whether powerful or impoverished, can work to improve.

For so long, developers and their architects have planned and designed segregated communities outside and inside of Detroitís limits. The innate fear of the other, the desire to protect and separate ourselves from difference, the mere convenience and simplicity of developing on unspoiled land, has created a development model where one class, whether poor, rich or middle, have been isolated in one place, separate from the other. It was a profitable model for some but detrimental to our overall culture and economy, and it made the distance from the center even greater.

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In much of this country, and in Detroit specifically, we have lacked the option of a vital, dense and diverse urban life. Many of us see and hope for a safe city that we can walk and live in with diverse people and places to enjoy. We have longed for the benefits of living in a socially and economically diverse place. This desire is now being recognized.

Developers are seeing the demand for urban living in Detroit, but the change is slow. Hopefully, bankruptcy does not dampen this progress. Kurt Metzger director of Data Driven Detroit has pointed out that even with downtown housing stock full, rental rates will need to increase for the market to be ready for more development. He says recent developments show rates are moving in the right direction.

I think there is no doubt: The market is ready; we are ready.

Architects are working with developers and the community to help bring this about. The first job of an architect is to envision a better-built world. Beyond the details of construction or any specific building style or type, we work with our clients and the community to bring about a shared vision of how we want to live. Then we provide the technical and artistic skill to make that vision a reality.

The signs are there to make this happen. Recently, architects and other designers contributed almost 200 entries to the competition for the former Hudsonís site; more than 200 entries were submitted to the Hart Plaza International design competition; the American Institute of Architects and other architects, like Dan Kincaid and Dan Pitera of University of Detroit Mercy, are participating in and leading the Detroit Works Project, and, of course, architects are working with private clients on large and small projects that will ultimately fill in and make Detroit a wonderful urban place.

The great bones of this city, the soul and creativity of its citizens, whether living in Detroit proper or the surrounding communities, make it possible to rebuild this place in an authentic way. From the beauty of the Detroit River to the Woodward city plan established in 1805, with its quirky hybrid spoke street grid combination, to the wonderful iconic historical buildings that fill our skyline, we have the makings of a great place here.

For citizens, community leaders and architects alike, there is a crucial ingredient that we cannot forget: This is a shared adventure; itís not a private enterprise. Whether poor or powerful, we are the people, together, re-creating this place, and we can be successful only if everyone is included in its vision and encouraged to participate in its construction.